Opting out of NHS Wales Bursary Scheme: Accessing Student Finance

Students can opt out of the NHS Wales Bursary Scheme and be funded solely by their normal student finance body.

This applies to new students who plan to study one of the following eligible courses:

• Diagnostic Radiography and Imaging (BSc)
• Occupational Therapy (BSc)
• Nursing (BN)
• Midwifery (BMid)
• Radiotherapy and Oncology (BSc)
• Physiotherapy (BSc)
• Dental Therapy and Hygiene (BSc)
• Dental Hygiene (DipHE)

You have until 10 weeks after starting the first year of the course to opt out of the NHS Wales Bursary Scheme and be solely funded by your student finance body.

Once you opt out you cannot easily opt back in. If you are considering changing your funding choice, we advise contacting the Student Funding and Advice team for guidance.

If you decide to opt out of the NHS Wales Bursary Scheme, you will need to register your decision with the NHS Wales Student Awards Service before applying for student finance. This is essential, otherwise your student finance body will not be able to assess you for the correct funding.

Previous studies in higher education will affect access to student finance funding. Please contact the Student Funding and Advice team for guidance.

Funding available from Student Finance

If you decide to opt out of the NHS Wales Bursary Scheme, the funding available from student finance will depend on where you were ordinarily resident before you started your course.

If you are ordinarily resident in Scotland or Northern Ireland, contact the Student Funding and Advice team for more information.

EU students with settled or pre-settled status and Irish citizens (under the Common Travel Area arrangement) may also be eligible for funding. Contact the Student Funding and Advice team for more information.

Extra Weeks Allowance

Many of our healthcare courses are longer than a standard course (30 weeks and 3 days) and so attract extra weeks of funding. An additional amount of student finance maintenance loan is available at a rate of between £110-£142 per extra week depending on your funding body. The weekly amount is reduced if you are living in the parental home.

You will be automatically assessed for any extra weeks’ allowances through your application to your funding body. Extra weeks for each course can vary from year to year. They are means-tested on household income.

Additional funding from student finance

Depending on your circumstances there may be additional funding available to you. For example, if you have a disability, or if you have children or an adult dependent. Please visit your student finance body for more information.

Cost of living in Cardiff

Cardiff is considered to be one of the most affordable UK cities to live in while you study. See our living cost calculator for the average cost of living in Cardiff as a full-time, undergraduate student.

Repaying student loans

Those who take an undergraduate tuition fee loan or maintenance loan via their student finance body will repay this under the normal terms and conditions of their funding body.

How to apply

The application process for students who intend to start a course in September 2024 is open.

If you decide to opt out of the NHS Wales Bursary Scheme and apply solely for student finance instead, you need to follow the steps below to ensure that your application is assessed correctly.

If you do not correctly opt out following the steps below, student finance will automatically assess your application assuming that you have opted into the NHS Wales Bursary Scheme and this will reduce the amount of funding available to you. The NHS Student Awards Service have produced a short opt-out guide.

Follow the steps below to begin your application:

1. Register your decision to opt out of the NHS Wales Bursary Scheme on the NHS Wales Student Awards Service website. Use the link for ‘New Students’ and register for an account. During the application, you will be asked if you want to make an advance commitment to work in Wales after you finish the course and there will be an option to select ‘No’.

Once you have done this, the NHS Student Awards Service will send you an email with a unique code (sometimes referred to as an FRSL code) to confirm you have opted out of the NHS Wales Bursary. You need to provide this email to your student finance body with your application.

2. Apply to your student finance body, based on where you are/were ordinarily resident in the UK before the start of the course.

Due to the complexities of the funding system, we advise that you apply on a PN1 form from your funding body and post it to them instead of applying online. This will still allow you to apply for everything you are entitled to via one form including tuition fee support and maintenance funding based on household income.

We would advise sending it by recorded or special delivery so you have a record of it being received by your funding body.

Once your student finance body has received your application and begun processing it they will send you a student finance Customer Reference Number (CRN). This is a 10-digit number that is included in all correspondence from them.

If you are ordinarily resident in Scotland or Northern Ireland, please contact the Student Funding and Advice team for more information.

3. Once you have received your CRN from student finance, forward to them your email from the NHS Wales SAS which has your unique opt-out code in it (sometimes referred to as your FRSL number). This process confirms that you have opted out of the NHS Wales Bursary Scheme. This should ensure that your application is assessed correctly and allow you to access your full student finance entitlement.

In the email to your funding body please include:

• your name
• Student Finance Customer Reference Number (CRN)

If you are ordinarily resident in Northern Ireland or Scotland please check with your student finance body as to the best way to provide your unique opt-out code to them.

Once you have done all the steps above, and provided all required information, we estimate that it will take in the region of 4-6 weeks for your funding application to be fully assessed by your funding body.

No funding will be payable to you until you have received confirmation of your funding entitlement and you have completed enrolment on to your course.

Changing your finance options

If you have applied to be funded by the NHS Wales Bursary Scheme but have changed your mind and want to opt-out and be solely funded by student finance, you can change your finance options in some circumstances.

If you have not yet enrolled at Cardiff University, or are within 10 weeks of the start of your course, you can amend your funding choice and opt out of the NHS Wales Bursary Scheme.

Assuming you have already applied to your student finance body for the fixed rate of available maintenance loan that is available as part of the NHS Wales Bursary Scheme, you will need to formally prove to your student finance body that you are opting out of NHS funding for them to reassess your funding entitlement and allow access to a tuition fee loan and further means-tested maintenance support. This prevents you from being double-funded in error.

Follow these instructions:

• ensure you have provided your student finance body with your unique NHS opt-out number (FRSL) and allowed them time to process this (see step 3 above). If you do not have a code please contact the NHS Wales Student Awards Service.
• wait for your email to be confirmed by your student finance body. If it has been longer than expected please call them to check if they received your email and are processing it
• only if you have an online account with your student finance body already; you will need to request to be means-tested for funding so that you can be assessed for the full student finance package of support. You will need to provide details of your household income and complete a tuition fee loan request form, (as previously the NHS were going to pay your tuition fees). You do this by filling in and submitting the following forms:

• once you have completed your forms, you can upload them to your online account with Student Finance, or post them (recommended by special delivery to ensure they are received)
• when you have been fully assessed, you will receive a financial entitlement notification letter from your student finance body, which will set out the amount of tuition fee loan and maintenance support you are entitled to

If you do not have an online account already then please follow the steps outlined above, under How to apply